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The 49ers signed tight end Tony Curtis and cornerback Keith Smith to future contracts in an effort to fill out their mini-camp and training camp rosters. The team also made the hire of former offensive lineman Ray Brown official as an assistant offensive line coach.

Brown held the same position with the Bills the last two seasons but wasn’t retained after the firing of Dick Jauron. “I really got the (coaching) bug,” Brown admitted during a conference call. Brown also said it was special to return to the 49ers where he played from 1996 through 2001. Brown earned Pro Bowl recognition in his last season with the 49ers.

Who wants to mess with Ray Brown?

“There are a lot of people who really touched our lives in this building,” Brown said. Possibly chief among them was his late offensive line coach, Bobb McKittrick. “Being smart, being physical,” Brown characterized as the main attributes of McKittrick’s teachings. “It’s about being a good man.”

Brown didn’t have a previous relationship with head coach Mike Singletary, other than playing against him. Brown said that in the first game of what would be a highly-decorated 20-year career, his then St. Louis Cardinals faced Singletary’s Bears and a huge brawl broke out. Brown said he stayed out of the fray because he didn’t want to jeopardize his eighth-round signing bonus. “I had a sense of myself even back then.”

If his linemen are able to adapt any part of Brown and his approach, they’ll be successful. An avid note-taker and film student, Brown will help the linemen with that aspect of the game. Brown also knows of in-coming offensive line coach Mike Solari, who coached tight ends when Brown played with the 49ers.

As far as adding linemen, Brown said he’ll likely be heavily involved in studying draft-eligible players. “That’s not my area of expertise,” he said. “I first have to learn the offense.”

They say (whoever they are) that your offensive line coach is the most important assistant on staff and the 49ers now seem to have the coaches to solidify their young line.